Means for mounting a folding side guard on a bed frame



March 28, 19 e. R. MAERTINS MEANS FOR MOUNTING A FOLDING SIDE GUARD ON ABED FRAME I: Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Nov. 25, 1957 l'wezor 29% R W March1961 G. R. MAERTINS 2,976,548

MEANS FOR MOUNTING A FOLDING SIDE GUARD ON A BED FRAME Filed Nov. 25,1957 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 2,976,548 MEANS FOR MOUNTING A FOLDING SIDE GUARDON A BED FRAME Filed NOV. 25, 1957 March 28, 1961 G, R, MAERTINS 3Sheets-Sheet 3 MEANS FOR MOUNTING A FOLDING SIDE GUARD ON A BED FRAMEGustave R. Maerfins, 395 Washington St., Hyannis, Mass.

Filed Nov. 25, 1957, Ser. No. 698,437

1 Claim. (Cl. -331) This invention relates to beds having folding sideguards of the type which include a bottom rail, a top rail extendingparallel to the bottom rail, and a plurality of parallel connectingmembers each of which is pivotally mounted at one end to the bottom railand at the other end to the top rail, and the invention has particularreference to the means for mounting such a side guard on the side railof the bed frame.

An object of the invention is to provide a. mounting means by which theside guard can be secured to the side rail of the bed in such positionthat when the side rail is folded the top rail thereof will besubstantially flush with the edge of the bed spring member on which themattress is supported.

The bed spring member is usually mounted on and supported by the siderails of the bed frame, and in some beds the bed spring member islocated close to the side rail and in other beds the bed spring memberis located at a considerable distance above the side rail. By means ofthe invention hereinafter described it is possible to so mount thefolding side guard on the side rail of any bed that when the side guardis folded the top rail thereof will always be substantially flush withthe bed spring member regardless of its position vertically relative tothe side rail of the bed frame.

If the folding side guard should be mounted on the side rail of the bedin such a manner that when the side guard is folded the top edge thereofprojected appreciably above the bed spring member, said top rail wouldinterfere somewhat with the tucking of the sheets and other bed coversaround the mattress, and said top rail of the folded side guard wouldalso present a rib along side of the bed spring member but just aboveit, which might cause inconvenience to the occupant of the bed.

In the drawings which illustrate one embodiment o the invention:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view-of a bed equipped with a folding side guardsuch as above referred to and which is mounted on the side rail of thebed by the improved mounting means, the said side guard being shown inits raised operative position;

Fig. 2 is a view similar to Fig. 1 but showing the side guard in itsfolded position;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged section on the line 3-3, Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is an exploded view of the parts constituting the mounting meansillustrated in Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 3 but showing the mounting meansadjusted for supporting a side guard on a bed in which the bed springmember is located close to the side rail;

Fig. 6 is an exploded view of the mounting means as shown in Fig. 5; and

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary view showing a bed construction in which the bedspring member is located close to the side rail of the bed frame.

In the drawings, 1 indicates generally a bed frame having the usual siderail 2 which is illustrated as an States Patent F e g 2,976,548 [CePatented Mar. 28, 1961 angle iron member, and 3 indicates generally afolding side guard which is mounted on the side rail 2 of the bed frame.

4 indicates a bed spring member on which the mattress is supported andwhich in turn is mounted on the side rail 2 of the bed.

As stated above, different beds may have the bed spring member 4 locatedat difierent distances from the side rail 2. In Figs. 1 and 2 the bedspring member 4 is located a considerable distance above the side rail2, while in Fig. 7 a construction is shown in which the bed springmember 4 is located at a lower level, quite close to the side rail 2.

The side guard 3 herein illustrated is of the type which includes abottom rail 6, a top rail 7 parallel to the bottom rail, and a pluralityof parallel connecting members 8 connecting the two rails, the lowerends of the connecting members being pivoted to the bottom rail at 9,and the upper ends of the connecting members being pivoted to the toprail at 10.

Each connecting member 8 is shown as having an offset portion 11 at eachend, the offset at the opposite ends being in opposite directions, thepurpose of this being to provide a side guard member which can be foldedinto the position shown in Fig. 2 without danger that the.

fingers of the person manipulating the side guard will be pinched. Whenthe side guard is in its folded position one of the connecting members 8rests on a stop element 25 carried by the bottom rail 6 of the guard.

-A folding side guard of this construction is illustrated in Patent No.2,799,869, dated July 23, 1957.

The mounting means, by which the folding side guard can be placed at theproper position so that when it is folded the top rail 7 will besubstantially flush with the bed spring member 4 regardless of theposition of the latter relative to the side rail 2., comprises aU-shaped clamp member 13 which embraces the flange 14 of the side rail 2and Which is clamped thereto by a clamping screw 17. The leg 15 of theclamp 13 rests against the outer face of the side rail and is longerthan the leg 16,

- said leg 15 being long enough so that when the clamp is clamped to theside rail 2 in its operative position, the upper end 21 of the leg 15projects slightly above the top of the side rail 2.

Associated with the clamp member 13 is an intermediate member 18 whichis separate from both the folding side guard and the clamp 13. Thisintermediate member is secured to the upper projecting end 21 of the leg15 of the clamp 13, and it lies against the outer faceof said leg 15.Said intermediate member is in the form of an elongated flat plate, thetwo opposite sides of which are fiat from one end to the other and eachend of which is a duplicate in shape and size of the other end, saidintermediate member having a length dimension somewhat greater than thatof the longer leg of the clamp member. Said intermediate member also isshown as having a plurality of bolt holes 19, and it is secured to theupper projecting end 21 of the leg 15 of the clamping member at a pointabove the side rail 2 by means of a bolt 20.

The construction of the intermediate member is such that it may besecured to the leg 15 with the upper end of said intermediate memberprojecting above the end 21 of the leg 15, as shown in Fig. 3, or saidintermediate member may be secured to said leg 15 with its lower enddepending below the clamp 13, as shown in Fig. 5. The folding side guardis mounted on the intermediate member by bolting the bottom rail 6 ofsaid guard to the end of the intermediate member which projects eitherabove or below the side rail. If the bed to which the side guard is tobe connected is one in which the bed spring member 4 is located at aconsiderable distance above the side rail 2, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2,and in Fig. 3, then the intermediate member 18 will be clamped to theleg 15 of the clamp in a position in which the upper end of saidintermediate member extends upwardly beyond the top 21 of the leg 15 andthe bottom rail 6 oi the side guard will be clamped to the upperprojecting end of the intermediate member 18, by means of a clampingbolt 23, as clearly seen in Fig. 3.

With this manner of mounting the folding side guardon the side rail ofthe bed, said side guard will be located at a sufiicient distance abovethe side rail 2 so that when the side guard is folded, as shown in Fig.2, the top rail 7 will be substantially flush with the bed spring member4.

If, however, the bed to which the side guard is to be attached is one inwhich the bed spring member is located at a lower level close to theside rail 3, as illustrated in Figs. 5 and 7, then the intermediatemember 18 will be secured to the leg 15 of the clamp 13 in a position inwhich the lower end of the intermediate member projects below the clampmember, as shown in Fig. 5. This can be done by adjusting theintermediate member so that the clamping bolt 20 will extend through thetop bolt hole 19 of the intermediate member, and by clamp ing the bottomrail 6 of the side guard to the lower end of the intermediate memberwhich projects below the clamp member 13. With this arrangement the sideguard is so positioned vertically relative to the side rail 2 that whenthe side guard is folded the top rail 7 thereof will be substantiallyflush with the bed spring member 4, as clearly seen in Figs. 5 and 7. Inclamping the bottom rail 6 of the side guard to the intermediate memberI will preferably employ a spacing collar 22 between the bottom rail 6and the intermediate member and use a clamping bolt 23 which extendsthrough the bottom rail 6, the spacing collar 22, and one of the boltholes 19 in the intermediate member 18. By making the intermediatemember with a plurality of bolt holes 19, it is possible to clamp theintermediate member 18 to the longer leg 15 of the clamp in difierentvertical positions from those herein illustrated to provide for mountingthe side guard on a bed in which the bed spring member has a positionintermediate of that shown in Figs. 3 and 5.

An advantage which accrues from the use of the spacers 22 is that whensaid spacers are used, the fold ing side guard is located at a distanceoutside of the bed side rail 2 so that if a mattress is used on the bedwhich has such a width that the edges of the mattress tend to overhangthe side rail, the folding side guard will be positioned so that theedge of the mattress will not interfere with the folding and openingmovement of the side guard.

I claim:

The combination with a bed frame having a side rail, a bed spring membersupported thereby, and a folding side guard having a bottom rail, a toprail, and a plurality of parallel connecting members each of which ispivotally connected to both the bottom rail and the top rail, of meansmounting said side guard on said side rail, said means comprising a Ushaped clamp member embracing said side rail and having one leg longerthan the other, the shorter leg being on the inside of the side rail andthe longer leg being on the outside thereof, clamping means to clamp theclamp member to the said side rail with the longer leg of said clampmember projecting above the side rail, an intermediate member separatefrom both the clamp member and the side guard, said intermediate memberbeing in the form of an elongated flat plate, the two opposite sides ofwhich form flat faces extending from one end to the other thereof andeach end of which is a duplicate in shape and size of the other end,said intermediate member having a length dimension somewhat longer thanthat of the longer leg of the clamp member, means to secure theintermediate member to the upper end of said longer leg of the clampmember at a point above the side rail and in either a position in whichthe upper end portion of the intermediate member projects above the siderail and the upper end of the longer leg of the clamp member, or in aposition in which the lower end of the intermediate member extends belowthe clamp member, and means to secure the bottom rail of the foldingside guard to the upper end of the intermediate member when the latteris mounted on the clamp member with its upper end projecting above theclamp member, thereby to locate the side guard in a position in whichwhen it is folded the top rail thereof will be flush with the bed springmember if-the bed frame is one in which said bed spring member islocated a considerable distance above said side rail, and to the lowerend of the intermediate member when the latter is mounted on the clampmember with its lower end depending below said clamp member thereby tolocate the side guard in another position in which when the side guardis folded the top rail thereof will be flush with the bed spring memberif the bed frame is one in which the said bed spring member is locatedclosely adjacent to the said side rail.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Leoneet a1, July 23, 1957

